Police officer fails to recognize Justin Timberlake during DUI arrest
A police officer who pulled over Justin Timberlake before his arrest for suspected drink-driving did not recognize the star, as reported by a US media outlet.
Timberlake had been dining with friends in Long Island, New York, before his arrest in the early hours of Tuesday.
Sag Harbor police chief Robert Drake stated that the 43-year-old star failed to stop at a stop sign and was swerving while driving a 2025 BMW at 12.37am. Court documents described his eyes as “bloodshot and glassy”.
Pic: Sag Harbor/Reuters
Page Six, the New York Post’s celebrity and entertainment site, reported that the officer who stopped Timberlake was so young that he did not know who he was.
“He didn’t recognize him or his name,” the source stated.
Another source mentioned in the report claimed that during the arrest, Timberlake murmured, “‘This is going to ruin the tour’.”
Timberlake, known for his success with boyband NSYNC and hits like “SexyBack” and “Cry Me A River”, is set to perform in Chicago this week and has shows scheduled across the US, Canada, and Europe from June to December.
Despite the charges against him, he is due to appear in court on July 26, which coincides with a show planned in Krakow, Poland.
These dates are still listed on his website.
Timberlake is married to actress Jessica Biel. Pic: Evan Agostini/Invision/AP/2024
Court documents from Sag Harbor described Timberlake’s arrest, noting “a strong odour of an alcoholic beverage… emanating from his breath, he was unable to divide attention, he had slowed speech, he was unsteady afoot and he performed poorly on all standardised field sobriety tests”.
Timberlake informed officers that he had one martini and was following friends home, but he refused a breath test.
He was then taken to a police station in nearby East Hampton and was seen leaving on Tuesday morning.
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Earlier this year, Timberlake released his sixth album, Everything I Thought It Was, his first solo music in six years. He also reunited with his NSYNC bandmates to perform in a live show.
As well as his pop career, the star has also had success as an actor, starring in films including Friends With Benefits, The Social Network, Bad Teacher and In Time.
He is married to actress Jessica Biel and the couple have two sons.
Sky News has reached out to Timberlake’s representatives for comment.
